John M. Davis, MD

Professor of Psychiatry and Research Professor of Medicine

Dr. Davis is interested in the biologic basis of major mental illness and its treatment with medication. He and his colleagues introduced the paradigm to psychiatry that major mental illness may be caused by biochemical abnormalities. His group was among the first to do studies on the pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of psychotropic drugs. His educational film to teach the recognition of certain side effects to physicians won a Telly award, the equivalent of an Academy Award for education industry films. He was among the first several physicians to introduce meta-analysis as a tool to pool scientific data.

He is interested in nutrition’s effect on mental and physical health, including work on how a mother’s diet during pregnancy influence a child’s intellectual capacity and mental health. The Economist wrote a cover story on this research, the illustration to which can be seen below: As a result of this work, the FDA’s revised its guidelines for diet of during pregnancy and the US Government’s changed its recommendations on nutrition. Dr. Davis is also interested in the role of nutrition in preventing heart attacks and strokes.

The ALSPAC longitudinal study of children of the 1990s, the clinical trials program of The Stanley Medical Research Institute, a collaborative US and China investigation into the prodrome of schizophrenia.